Bernstein turns up heat again on abortion; Pro-choice GOPs join fray

Scott Sonner

Wednesday, Sept. 27, 2000 | 9:43 a.m.

RENO, Nev. - Democratic Senate hopeful Ed Bernstein sharpened his attack on John Ensign's abortion stance Tuesday, saying his Republican rival's extreme opposition to abortion speaks to his lack of sensitivity to women.

"Understand, this is not an issue about choice, per se," Bernstein told about 125 students at Reno's McQueen High School.

"This is an issue about this man's sensitivity toward women. ... It's a glimpse into the mind of how this guy thinks," he said outlining a series of strong statements Ensign has made in opposition to abortion.

Bernstein has continued to hammer at Ensign on the abortion issue, which has engulfed the campaign in recent days and is emerging as a key factor in a race that until recent weeks had been viewed as an Ensign runaway.

Nevada Republicans for Pro-Choice waded into the controversy Tuesday, saying an Ensign television ad on the topic is confusing some voters and giving them the misimpression that Ensign is pro-choice.

And Dema Guinn, wife of Nevada GOP Gov. Kenny Guinn, defended her role in that television ad in which she spoke as a pro-choice Republican who believes Ensign would be the best senator for Nevada women.

Meanwhile, the Ensign campaign continued its call for television stations to pull an ad by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee that the former congressman says misrepresents his abortion views.

The Democratic ad that Ensign wants pulled paraphrases a recent comment Ensign made about what he would recommend if an 11-year-old girl were raped and became pregnant.

Ensign, who supports a constitutional amendment banning abortion, said in response to a caller's question on Pahrump's KPVM Channel 41:

"I believe that helping them find a home for that baby is the best thing for them psychologically."

The Democrats' ad states, "Ensign said even an 11-year-old rape victim and her family should have no choice."

Peter Ernaut, Ensign's campaign director, said the ad is "a bold-faced lie.

"The ad says John Ensign said this and he didn't say it," Ernaut said.

"Abortion is a very emotional and personal issue. It is no secret that John Ensign is pro-life. But it is not a litmus test," he said.

"The only reason we keep talking about it is Ed Bernstein is distorting his record and lying about his statements," he said.

Bernstein said in an interview Tuesday that Ensign "was making a judgment about what would be better - he was acting as psychiatrist for an 11-year-old girl."

"For him to say that is not an exact quote from him, well John, that is your position - that an 11-year-old girl who is raped, should not have a choice," he said.

"I don't hear them saying 'We want 11-year-old girls to have a choice."'

During his appearance before the high school students earlier, Bernstein said he hadn't intended to bring the matter up until he was asked a question about it.

He said Ensign "made a statement about, if an 11-year-old girl is raped, it is more psychologically damaging after she's been raped for her to have an abortion than it would be for her to carry the child.

"I didn't appreciate that statement - to tell me that women who have been raped, especially 11-year-olds, what may or may not be more psychologically damaging," he said.

"I'm sorry, United States senators don't say something like that. ... But this is how he thinks."

Nevada Republicans for Pro-Choice took aim at an ad featuring Mrs. Guinn saying she is pro-choice, but that Ensign is the right choice to succeed retiring Sen. Richard Bryan.

"It is a confusing ad for people. I've been getting phone calls from people who thought the ad was confusing," said Ann Thompson of Reno, state chairman of Nevada Republicans for Pro-Choice.

Thompson helped narrowly defeat a state party platform plank earlier this year urging support of the "unalienable right to life for every person from conception to a natural death."

"I would like to think that this was not done intentionally by the Ensign campaign to confuse this voters. We all know that he is anti-choice," Thompson said. "Ads of this nature only lead to increased public distrust of politicians."

Mrs. Guinn said she assumed anyone who had followed the campaign knew that Ensign was "pro-life."

"I apologize if I was misleading in any way. I didn't think it was misleading," she said. "I've worked along with John on women's health issues."

In regard to abortion, she said, "We don't agree on this issue, but I'm still supporting him."